


Permanent

by roguewrld



Series: Permanent [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-26
Updated: 2012-12-28
Packaged: 2017-11-22 11:45:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/609478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roguewrld/pseuds/roguewrld
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Falling in love with Bruce Banner was never Pepper's plan. </p><p>Fill for a kinkmeme post: http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/5102.html?thread=4409582#t4409582</p><p>The fact that Bruce is kind, considerate and intelligent is what makes Pepper like him. The way he cares about Tony and tries to help her take care of him is what makes Pepper fall in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Pepper didn’t drink to hide from her problems. She didn’t drink to relieve stress. She only drank when Tony almost died, and then it’s only to prevent herself from finishing the job. She was three drinks in when Tony finally came home the night of the battle, and he wasn’t alone. She set down her glass and crossed the lobby to the elevator. She hugged Tony, very hard, and whispered in his ear, “If you ever die and leave me here all alone, I will never forgive you.”

To his credit, he didn’t startle. He just nodded, as if he was actually taking something seriously for once. “I know.” Then he stepped back and introduced her to the man he’d brought home. “Pepper, this is Bruce Banner. He needs a place to stay.”

“Doctor Banner.” Pepper extended a hand, and he just stared at it. “Doctor?”

He blinked a few times and gave her a wary look. “You do know who I am, you have to. It’s been all over the news.”

“I saw and thank you for catching Tony. I appreciate it.” When she figured out he wasn’t even going to shake her hand, she hugged him. He looked like he needed it, even if it’s a bit like hugging a statue. “JARVIS, do we have a bedroom with four walls and a ceiling for Doctor Banner?”

“The guest suite is still intact, ma’am.”

“Good. JARVIS, let’s have a lighted walkway for our guest.”

Bruce put on his glasses and stared at the lights on the baseboards. Finally, he started walking, following them almost in a daze. Pepper watched him and couldn’t help but smile a little. “Tony, he’s adorable.”

“Can I keep him?”

It was a serious question and Pepper sat back down with her drink to think about it. They’d had a discussion about this, about a week into their relationship, but he hadn’t ever actually brought someone else home. “What’s going to happen when you get bored with him? Is he the kind of man to take that hard?” Was he going to go public and ruin our lives, was what she was really asking.

“I don’t think Bruce Banner does permanent.” Tony eased onto the couch beside her, moving like his whole body was a giant bruise. It probably was. “I think he’d find temporary to be extremely reassuring. Also, I’m seducing him for science.”

“Then, yes, you can keep him.”

Tony kissed her. It was full of gratitude and exhaustion. “You’re wonderful, you know. You want in, you just let me know. I’ll make sure its… well, not safe, but not radioactive at least.”

* * *

The morning after Bruce and Tony had sex for the first time, Bruce made Pepper breakfast. “And you’re really okay with all this?”

She took a bite of waffle and sighed. It was crispy and perfect and he’d made a raspberry compote too. “You made me waffles, Bruce.”

“Yes, and apparently, now I’m having sex with your boyfriend. I wasn’t aware the acts cancelled each other out.” He sat down at the table across from her and poked at his own waffle. “This is not the kind of pursuit I’m used to, Pepper.”

She patted his hand and cut another piece, dragging it through the raspberries. “I’m going to be perfectly honest with you. Tony is used to getting what he wants, and once he has it he gets bored very easily. Trying to keep him all to myself is just a recipe for disaster.”

Bruce stared into his mug as if the tea leaves at the bottom held answers but she could see his whole body relax. “That’s good, that he gets bored. This isn’t permanent. I’m not staying.”

“Of course.” He’d been at the Tower for less than a month. She gave it another six weeks, tops.

* * *

All of a sudden, Tony was turning up in her bed most mornings. He wasn’t there when she went to sleep, when she woke up in the morning, she would find him curled up at her left, sound asleep. Tony had never been particularly good at sleeping, even before Afghanistan but after the attack on New York it had gotten worse. He wouldn’t talk about it, but she knew he didn’t feel safe anywhere, not even in the Tower with JARVIS watching.

After two weeks of Tony actually sleeping, she cracked and asked Bruce. “What, exactly, are you doing to him? Is there some kind of magical sexual act I can perform to make him sleep on command?” If it required a penis, she would need to have JARVIS take some 3D images before Bruce left.

“Oh.” Bruce looked up from the crossword. “The Other Guy made some kind of deal with him, about protecting the Tower while we’re here? I was afraid to ask for details.”

That made a certain kind of twisted Tony-Sense. If the nearly indestructible rage monster was on your side, it was probably safe to sleep. That still left her with one question. “Then why is he in my bed, not yours?”

“I didn’t want to monopolize him. I told him he couldn’t sleep in my bed.”

Ouch. “Please stop doing that.” On the other hand… “He tried to sleep with you? Actually sleep?”

“Apparently I’m comfortable.” Bruce filled in fourteen down. “He’s a lot of work for you, isn’t he?”

“I love Tony.” It’s not a no.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

* * *

After that, Tony started showing up on time for things. Half the time, he looked under caffeinated and bewildered but sober and present. Papers got signed, patents got filed. He ate on a regular basis, he sleeps in a bed more than once a week. Pepper had to face facts. Tony was obviously too much work for one person, and she’d been on her own running his life since Edwin had died.

“Bruce,” She set down the report on the applications of the new ceramic Tony had developed since he’d gotten paranoid about Magneto. “You know minding Tony isn’t actually your job. I’m not really sure what your job is, but the lawyers assure me it involves lab work not babysitting.”

“It’s fine.” Bruce switched on the auto-pipetter. “JARVIS reminds me when the meetings are and I’ve got the time to trade sex for favors. He didn’t dump his entire empire in my lap then go hide in the garage.”

And later, Pepper will identify that as the moment she fell in love, because Bruce got it. “Does that experiment need supervising?”

“Not really. I think Tony installed an AI in it, which…” Bruce trailed off as Pepper started unbuttoning her shirt. “Uh.”

“You’ve been a big help to me, Bruce.” She pushed his chair away from the lab bench so it was pressed against a wall and stepped out of her underwear. She left the skirt on. “Maybe I can do something for you.” She reached out and took off his glasses and set them down on the bench.

“I didn’t really think….” She straddled him and Bruce almost lost his train of thought. “You don’t seem like a roller coaster person.”

“I’m not.” Pepper whispered in his ear. “You’ve been working with Tony for three months and you haven’t hulked out and killed him yet. I think I’m safe.”

“As safe as you want to be.” He brushed back a lock of her hair and kissed her.

* * *

“You’ve been holding out on me.” Pepper spread herself out on Tony’s couch and stared at the ceiling.

“I have not.” Tony actually sounded a little offended. “I’ve signed every piece of paper that showed up here this week-“

“I meant Bruce.” Her knees still hurt a little, but it had been worth it. “It has been an excellent afternoon.”

Tony set down his soldering iron. “JARVIS, lock the door for me, buddy.” He came over to the couch and sat down on the floor next to Pepper. “I knew you’d like him. He’s good, isn’t he?”

“Very.” She ruffled Tony’s hair then gave it a little tug. “Come up here.” It’s a nice, deep couch, with plenty of room for his knees when Tony straddled her. “I haven’t showered.”

He buried his face in her neck, smelling Bruce on her. “You’re the best, Pepper.”

Afterwards, Tony muttering sweet nothings in her ear about his plans for a new chest piece, it occurred to Pepper that this wasn’t going to last. Sooner or later, this was going to end and Bruce was going to leave. She closed her eyes and tried to ignore the ache in her chest.

* * *

She met the Hulk on a Wednesday afternoon, on an undeveloped plot of land Stark Enterprises owned Upstate. She set up her laptop under a tree for shade and Tony put on the suit to play with the Hulk.

She spent most of the day reviewing contracts with the occasional break to watch the boys’ game of keep-away. Tony looked a little like a fly buzzing around the Hulk’s head, but to the Hulk’s credit he didn’t seem to be swatting too hard.

At one point, she tapped into Tony’s communication line. “What, exactly, are you testing today?”

“Speed upgrades.” She watched him take an impressive dive, swooping out of the Hulk’s reach. “Also, Hulk’s new pants.”

“If you’re done playing, we could eat lunch.” She was at a good stopping point.

She was a bit surprised when Hulk’s voice came over the line. “Hulk could eat.” Then he grabbed Tony mid-flight and dragged him toward the tree, like a three year old would drag a stuffed animal. He dropped Tony in front of her and grinned.

Tony’s face plate opened. “JARVIS, make a note. Still not fast enough for biologicals.”

“Yes, sir. May I recommend staying on the Hulk’s good side for the time being?”

The Hulk flopped on the ground next to her so they could watch the robot Tony had brought along take him out of the armor. For the Hulk, his next words were almost a whisper. “Hulk could have caught hours ago.”

“I know, sweetheart, but it was nice of you to let Tony test his upgrades.” She had a picnic basket for herself and Tony, but the Hulk was of a different scale. “If you’re hungry I brought you a sandwich.” Sandwich was a bit of an understatement. The thing was actually a party platter that fed 30.

Tony laid down next to her on the blanket and put his head in her lap. “How are the pants, Big Guy?  Stretchy enough?”

“Pants fine. Other Guy will be happy, no more photos.”

It took Pepper a minute to figure out why the Hulk wearing pants would make Bruce happy. “Tony, are there naked pictures of the Hulk on the Internet?”

“Pepper, there are naked pictures of everyone famous on the internet.” He seemed to think about what he’d said, then reassured her, “Except you. I made sure of it.”

“Thank you?” She’d thought those photos of Clint in the Enquirer had been photoshopped but maybe he really did sunbathe nude on his balcony.

They sat there eating and talking but the Hulk was quiet and he was staring at the sky rather than listening. She expected him to change back to Bruce, but he didn’t. It was hard to tell what the Hulk was thinking when he wasn’t smashing. Tony had taken a scan of his brain a while back and it wasn’t quite human. He had to work hard to speak. Eventually, he seemed to settle on the words and looked away from the clouds to look at them. “I want to stay.”

Pepper wished he hadn’t said it because now she wanted to beg him to stay. If the Hulk wanted to be stay with them, Bruce really couldn’t stop him, but it wasn’t fair. Tony, however, didn’t really care about fair. “You do your part, Big Guy, and I’ll do mine. Sooner or later, Bruce will come around.”

He got up and climbed into the Hulk’s lap. It looked ridiculous, like he was sitting in one of those giant chairs you could get your picture taken in but when he held out a hand to help her up she took it. 

* * *

On Friday nights the three of them ate dinner, watched a movie and then had the kinds of sex the city’s most lurid tabloids theorized about. The rest of the week was less structured. There were afternoons when one of Pepper’s meetings got cancelled and she wandered down to Bruce’s lab. Sometimes they talked, about renewable energy, about health care in the third world, about Tony’s alarming new habit of tweaking the suit so it went ‘faster.’ Other times, when he wasn’t too busy they have sex on a spare lab bench. Once, they went down to Tony’s workshop and had sex on his couch while Tony and JARVIS are working on the next Stark Tower.

Pepper was finding it harder and harder not to say something as time passed, as she fell deeper and harder for Bruce. It wasn’t that Tony would mind, it’s that Bruce would. Bruce wasn’t staying, Bruce’s presence in their lives and his assistance in Tony wrangling and human rights advocacy and waffle making was temporary. He didn’t belong to them, no matter how much she wished otherwise.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This whole thing is Tony's doing.

Bruce was lying next to her, doing an excellent impression of an inanimate object, when Pepper finally got muscle control back and sat up. She reached over him to the bed side table and picked up her phone. He smiled at her, lazily and said, “You’re not going back to work, are you?”

“No, I’m just going to text Tony and tell him he’s missed all the fun.”

He watches hed, that little smile still on his lips, until suddenly it was gone and he was scrambling to a sitting position. He looked vaguely horrified. Pepper set the phone done and reached for him. “Bruce, are you okay?”

He jerked back from her hands. “I’m fine. It’s just…” The terror faded a little bit. “I just realized I’m in love with you.”

Well, that was a lucky break and she let out a breath it felt like she’d been holding for months. “It’s okay, Bruce. I love you too.” She reached for him again, and this time he lets her. “Bruce, it’s okay. It’s fine. I don’t think he’ll mind.”

“It’s not that.” The worry is gone, but now he looked confused. “JARVIS, how long have I been living here?”

“One year, nine months, four days, sir.”

And now Pepper got it. “That can’t be right. We can’t have been sleeping with you for eighteen months.”

“I know Tony likes to do dangerous things, but it’s been a year and a half. After a year and a half, even sleeping with a guy that can become a rage machine any minute has to get mundane.” He stared off into space, thinking about it. “Pepper, could he have planned this?”

“With Tony, hardly anything is an accident.” She couldn’t figure out why he’d done it, even though she was sure Tony had orchestrated the whole thing somehow. “He brought you here with intent, I can tell you that for sure. He was planning on seducing you from the moment the elevator doors opened.”

“Was he always planning on sharing? Is that unusual?”

“He was, and it is very unusual. Here.” She grabbed his glasses off the bedside table. “We need to figure this out. The last time he tried to keep things from me while executing an intricate plan, he almost died.”

* * *

“Tony.” The other man gave a low moan. “Tony, why did you bring me home?”

“Less talking, more thrusting.”

Tony tried to move and Bruce pinned his wrists to the floor. “Tell me, Tony.”

Tony opened his eyes. His pupils were blown. “You were very smart. And it was very dangerous.”

Bruce leaned close and pressed his lips to Tony’s ear. “Aren’t you bored yet, Tony?”

The hot air makes Tony writhe a little and he gasps. “No, I’m not bored. I promise.”

“You must be. Come on, Tony. Even baiting the Hulk must get mundane after a while.” Tony makes another desperate noise, but Bruce doesn’t move.

“Need you here. Need you to stay.” Tony finally gasps and Bruce lets go of his wrists and circles a hand around his dick.

* * *

“I sent you down the lab an hour ago to bring Tony to bed.” It was already dark in the room, and Pepper was spread diagonally across their big bed, taking up as much space as possible. “You forgot something.”

“I left him on his cot in the workshop. I may have overdone it a little.” She could feel, rather than see, Bruce slip into bed and she moved over to accommodate him. “When he wakes up, I’m sure he’ll come to bed.”

“Okay.” She curled around him, could smell the sex on him.

“Do you think it’s possible he just got used to me being around?” He stroked Pepper’s hair, thinking about what Tony had said.

“What did he say?”

“That he needed me to stay.”

It wasn’t the whole story, and they both knew it. It explains why Bruce was still here, not why Tony had brought him home in the first place, but the pieces are starting to fall together. Pepper splayed her fingers across Bruce’s chest, feeling his heart. It was reassuring, in the same way that the light from the arc reactor was. “Tony only likes change if he invents it himself. Once he gets used to you, it’s impossible to get away.”

“I’m done running.”

When Tony came to bed, he pushed Bruce to one side and climbed in between them. Neither of them woke up, but Pepper made an inviting noise and threw an arm across his chest.

* * *

There was always a chance of Tony getting hurt, but she’d never thought to worry about Bruce. She was looking at streaming video from the hotel, SHIELD agents swarming the room, collecting evidence. “They shot him in the head, Tony. He cannot possibly be fine.”

“He is, I promise. Here.” The camera swung away from the forensics team so she could see the Hulk sitting in the corner. Someone had draped a silver blanket around his shoulders, like you would a shock victim. It looked ridiculous. “Hulk, tell Pepper you’re both okay.”

The Hulk looked… offended. “Hulk protect Banner. Hulk always protect Banner.”

“I know, sweetheart, and you’re very good at it. You’ve kept Bruce safe a long time.” She zoomed in the video feed so she could get a better look at him. “But people shouldn’t shoot at the two of you when you’re eating. It’s not like a battle.”

Tony swung the camera back to himself. “Okay, Forensics is going to do evidence collection on the Hulk, and then he’s going to let Bruce come back. We’ll be back in New York in a couple hours, tops.”

“I’ll clear my calendar. I’m all yours, the rest of the day.” The video cut out and when she put the phone down on her desk her hands were shaking. She pressed her fingers to her temples. Her head hurt worse than Tony had ever made it. She wasn’t used to being afraid for Bruce.

Pepper took a deep breath, then another, then she picked up her phone and dialed. “Natasha, I need your help. It’s about General Ross.”

By the time Tony’s jet was landing outside the city, Pepper had options. Natasha still had friends in low places and her old partner has recently resurfaced. He was the best, Natasha promised. If she really wanted this done, he could make it happen.

She was still thinking about it when their car rolled up and Bruce stepped out, whole and unscathed. She didn’t hug him in front of the building but only because there were too many cameras.

* * *

They put Bruce in the middle, and he stayed there without too much protest. He let Pepper run her fingers through his hair, looking for bullet holes or scars or even a bald patch to let her know where he was hit. He let Tony touch him everywhere, seeking out all the scars on his body from before the Hulk was a living breathing thing and catalog them. He lay there, quietly, until Tony’s phone started to ring. “It’s Clint. Here.” He pushed Bruce closer to Pepper. “Hold this. I’ll be right back.” When he left the room, it falls into darkness. Bruce didn’t need the light to know she was terrified.

“Bruce.” She tangled her fingers in his hair. “They shot you in the head. Can you at least pretend to be upset?”

“Ross has done worse to me.” Bruce was brilliant, but it wouldn’t take a genius to figure out who had tried to kill him. “I’m not hurt. I don’t think anything can hurt me anymore.” It’s a confession, one he hadn’t said aloud to anyone else.

Her hands stilled. “Does Tony know?”

“I’m sure he’s figured it out.” Bruce has said something wrong, but he wasn’t not sure what. He was just trying to be reassuring. “We did some tests, when I first got here.”

“I’m going to wring his neck.” Pepper said it very sweetly and went back to stroking his hair. “He’s gone too far this time.”

“Ross?” The conversation seems to have jumped back to him, at least, Bruce hoped it had. She didn’t answer, but there was a sound almost like a laugh, quickly stifled. “JARVIS, give me ten percent lights.”

He could see her face now, and she looked slightly hysterical. “Bruce, I told him if he died and left me alone, I would never forgive him. He might has well have tied a bow on you and left you on my pillow.” She tucked her head under his chin and rested an ear on his chest. “Do you think he really was just going to offer you a place to sleep? That I upset him so much he decided right there on the spot to seduce you and give you to me as a present?”

“Does it matter?” Bruce ran a hand up and down her back, staring into space in the dim light. “Do you want me to go?”

She slapped his chest. “No. Just because it was all one of Tony’s plots doesn’t make it less real. I love you. I want you here.”

Bruce buried his nose in her hair and inhaled deeply. “Thank you.”

The door creaked back open and the soft blue light of the arc reactor filled the room. Tony got back into bed and sprawled on Bruce’s free side. “Clint has some ideas about who the shooter is. There aren’t that many military snipers who could make that shot.”

“There’s no rush.” Bruce closed his eyes in contentment and smiled a little. “I’m not going anywhere.”

The look of triumph on Tony’s face was fleeting, but Pepper saw it and hid her smile in Bruce’s chest. It was hard not to start laughing, to give it all away. Sometimes, you just had to let Tony think he'd gotten away with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tony's perspective, tied into 'You Have Four New Messages' is also on my agenda to write.


End file.
